arjgail

I am a stay at home Mom of three. I enjoy painting, sewing and crafts. I teach art and craft classes for kids on a regular basis. I am always trying to teach myself new techniques. I enjoy making little dolls and I am often influenced by what my kids are interested in. I have made several small Waldorf/Nature table type dolls that seem to be quite popular. My kids are not in a waldorf school I just like to make the dolls.

I recently started exploring creative crafting with my computer. I have been scanning in my paintings, altering them and creating transfers and embellishments. I subscribe to International Artist, Cotton Time (Japanese), Adorn, and Martha. Craft techniques I would like to know more about are needle felting, paper making, and small animal or doll making. Any patterns or links you want to share would also be appreciated.

I am interested in getting unusual craft/fabric/paper supplies that are not available in Canada.

I am interested in receiving fabric(fat quarters) that have small prints, any wool felt or felted wool in small amounts, Small beads as I use these on the dolls.

• any bits of ultra suede which I use to make shoes for the dolls

  As a painter I tend to do landscapes and buildings. Pictures of unusual(old) buildings or landmarks from your area would also be appreciated (postcards). I love historical buildings, castles, street or market scenes.

  • I am not a big scrapbooker but I tend to use alot of these supplies in cardmaking, papercrafting, packaging for my for sale items, and with my kids. Small amounts of your extras(stickers, labels, papers) would be great.

• unusual buttons, I especially like wood and metal ones. Even if it is just a single one as I will turn it into something or use it on a doll.

• little charms that would make a good brooch or pendant for a doll or to use in a diorama.

• ribbon(for sewing not wrapping), trims, broccade, braid

• small amounts of fuzzy yarn, yarn with different textures woven in it. I use this for doll hair.

• eyes or eye buttons, smaller is better as my creations are smaller. There are also some triangular shaped buttons that are used for noses for animals that I would appreciate.

• thread in different colors, quilting thread

• I would love any needle felting supplies

• fabric dye in skin tone colors

• owls, mushrooms, hedgehog, squirrel, (woodland creatures, Beatrix Potter or Tasha Tudor) related items.

• I am also into fantasy but I like the older(vintage) style (spiderwick,LOR) type stuff. i.e.fairies, dragons, mermaids, Redwall type creatures but not the more modern manga type stuff.

• I am a avid gardener, I love english country garden type stuff. Anything victorian looking.

• minatures/small doll house furniture(less than 4")or acessories. I make dollhouses and minatures at 1/12 scale but would be interested in any small items. Some accessories from Christmas villages also work like benches, bridges, wishing wells etc. I make little minature gardens with them in pots.

• bird related items especially chickadees or sandpipers. (shorebirds) These can be pictures, prints and patterened items, stickers, fabric,etc.

• small amounts of newspaper/clippings in foreign languages, I use these for cards and papercrafts.

• vintage type illustrations that are botanical, animal or bird related.

• maps(vintage or modern).

-tall ships and shipwreck type stuff, mermaids, sea serpents(pictures, printed items, stickers, knots, nautical things) My sons are fascinated with pirates however I'm more into old explorer type stuff...I was always the type who was happy at any museum even when I was a kid. I like to collect interesting things which I incorprate into my dolls, artwork, stumpwork or diorama type projects.

• shells or sea glass(not the fake stuff) if you live in a costal area

• embroidery thread, I can never get enough, embroidery patterns

• pressed flowers or photocopies of them

• cotton(natural fibre) lace (no synthetic please)

• I also started making dolls out of gloves( the knit stretchy ones that are one size fits all) but it is hard to get white, brown,light pink, or any skin tone colored ones ( no prints just solid colors). If you can find some it would be great. They can just be dollar store type .I would also like the plain work gloves they sell at hardware or garden stores and if you find cotton ones I would be thrilled. No patterns but white or neutral colored as I can dye them skin tones.

• just about any small item that is either cute or vintage looking.

• making dolls and painting, creating dollhouses, dioramas or scenes from favorite books in miniature.

• reading historical fiction ( now that sounds like a contradiction but it is a category). I am a big fan of High Fantasy( which is fantasy books with a historical type twist). My current favorites are the Liveship Trader Series by Robin Hobb(I like all her books), anything by Jack Whyte, I have read all of George Martin, Robert Jordan(I will miss him), I am plugging away at the Confessor series, and J.V. Jones.

• Jane Austen

• watching Coronation Street, Antique Roadshow, The Tudors, Rome (anything historical)

• traveling both armchair and in the flesh

• gardening

• cooking and baking

• libraries, second hand book stores

• museums